Top Gear star Freddie Flintoff, 41, who is one of the BBC show’s new presenters, wound up coming off the track on a Time Bandit Trike during filming. Contrary to reports, the was no crash involved, with the former cricketer simply running out of runway on the airfield, which happened to be the site of former host Richard Hammond’s notorious Vampire Dragster crash, which left him in a coma for two weeks. At the time of the incident, Freddie and co-star Paddy McGuiness, 46, were competing in a drag race. Although he came of the track, Freddie coasted to a safe stop on the grass nearby and was completely unhurt.
The presenter did not require medical attention and was wearing full protective clothing for the race.
In a statement, the BBC told Express.co.uk: “The health and safety of our presenters and crew on Top Gear is paramount.
“As viewers of the recent series will have seen, Freddie is often keen to get ‘off the beaten track’.
“Tuesday’s filming at Elvington Airfield was no exception – but he suffered no injuries as a result of his spontaneous detour, as fans will see for themselves when we show the sequence in full in the next series,” they added.
Meanwhile, Freddie told The Mirror he was “absolutely fine” following the “spontaneous detour”.
Revealing he was back filming Top Gear yesterday, he said: “I go to great lengths to make sure I do well in Top Gear drag races but on this occasion I went a few lengths too far.
“It will look more ridiculous than dangerous when you see it on TV.”
An onlooker told the publication the presenter had jumped straight back up after coming off the track, “dusted himself down and wondered what everyone was fussing about”.
“There wasn’t a scratch on him,” they added.
Richard, 49, was involved in a serious car crash at Elvington airfield back in 2006 whilst driving a jet-powered car capable of speeds up to 370mph.
The near-fatal incident left him with severe head injuries and he remained in a coma for a fortnight after the incident, taking several years to fully recover.
Freddie, real name Andrew Flintoff, is a presenter, pundit and former England cricket star.
He has been a team captain on Sky’s sports game show A League of Their Own since 2010 and also hosts Australia’s Ninja Warrior.
Last year, it was confirmed he would be joining Top Gear alongside Paddy and host Chris Harris, 44.
The first series with the refreshed presenting line-up tried earlier this year.
The trio are currently filming their second series together, Top Gear’s 28th.
